Stay
by Orokid
Summary: After the final episode in the anime, Kyo watches over Tohru, mixed with emotions a tenderness and regret.


**Orokid: **_So… it's been a long time since I've written anything that has to do with Fruits Basket, huh? I know that I haven't really read anything in the manga despite the first graphic novel, so I really don't know much of the story outside of the anime- something I've rarely ever done, I admit. So… To tell the truth, this is in anime-verse, starting where the anime had ended- after Tohru and Kyo come home and she's resting in her room after the things he ha put her through. Of course, he regrets it. Thus… this story came into my head._^u^_Hope it's enjoyable!_

**Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Fruits Basket or the characters Tohru or Kyo (which are the only ones I have used in this story). All of these belong to the writer, illustrator, and the company that bought and produced the work of fiction. Not me. The end._

**Stay**

It seemed strange to have acted in such a way, Kyo realized, thinking back to how he had foolishly pushed away someone who was so obviously good for him. Then again, he knew and understood the way in which he had been, fighting desperately within himself over the warring emotions that boiled passionately in his veins. He had always been a fighter too, opting violence- whether actual or verbal- over a calmer situation due to the circumstances they found themselves in.

By circumstance, he meant how he and twelve other members of his odd and cursed family transformed into animals from the Chinese zodiac when touched by members of the opposite gender who weren't cursed as well. And he, as it so figured, had gotten the worst bit of the spell that anyone could get, changing into a feral monster if the beads around his wrist broke off.

The young man cursed to himself for allowing his transformation to have come between what he had hoped to be the slow start of a budding romance. Memories of his beloved's first encounter with the creature he had become came back to him with ease, and the fear in her eyes as she had approached him haunted most of his dreams. In an attempt to protect her from the truth, he had done the one thing he had hoped desperately not to do. As she held on, hoping to cure his embarrassed feral form, she had only gotten hurt.

He stood now at her bedside, watching her as she slept peacefully despite the pain that was in her ribs. The orange haired teen forcefully held himself back from running a finger across the small bruises that decorated her face, knowing that he did not deserve such a thing as feeling her soft skin beneath his fingertips. And he did not deserve it because it had been him who had done it all to her.

The young man ran his strong and long fingers through his brightly colored hair, leaning against the wall nearest to the door to the hallway. While it may have seemed a bit cowardly to keep close to the exit, he knew that it was probably the best thing he could ever do. Once she would awake, he would leave her side, knowing that no one in their right mind would want a monster like him around.

A small yet sad smile crossed his lips, and he closed his eyes as he truly thought about what had gone through his mind. This particular young woman had never really been in the right state of mind, having to live with three useless men who could turn into animals. She had accepted them without knowing them, adored them for each of their odd difficulties, personalities and traits, and she remained nearby despite the punishment that their family's God had given her. She was never sane enough to leave them after all of this time.

Still, despite the fact that the chances of it occurring were more than likely small, he still feared that she might regain her missing sense and never return to their mild lodgings in the forest that surrounded their home. And, as the night grew ever closer to day, the realization that it may happen this time echoed painfully within his heart.

"Kyo-kun?"

The voice had surprised him, and he found then that escaping might seem as though he was running away from the problem his accursed form had made. Never did he want her to feel like he was turning his back upon her, feared her, like his family had done with him. Grunting, he made his soft reply. "Yeah, Tohru-chan?"

Before he had noticed it, the injured girl had reached out and intwined her hand within his own. In the midnight hours, he found himself praying that she couldn't see the bright blush upon his cheeks. The dark haired girl gave him a smile, and he knew that it was the one that she always gave whenever she saw worry in his amber colored eyes. "Please… don't ever leave me, Kyo-kun."

Surprise appeared immediately on his features, his usual scowl gone from his face. The tone of her voice hadn't made it seem like an order, a small bit of pleading within the core of it, and she offered him that smile that he loved so dearly yet again. There was no way for him to deny such a straightforward request, whether she knew that she had trapped him or not.

The young man smiled, his free hand covering his face in case the girl might see how red it was, settling himself into the space directly beside the bed in which she slept. His hand tightened lightly around hers, resting his body against the wall he now sat against. "Alright, Tohru-chan. I won't leave."

As the sun rose that morning, two unlikely souls grew ever closer, dreaming of the other as sleep overtook their forms. In the end, the beautiful maiden and the beast loved without a soul knowing it, pairing in their thoughts despite reality's cruel curse on his soul.

And Kyo would desperately try to remain by her side from this life to the next.

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**Orokid:**_So… anybody want to give me a review and tell me what you thought about it? I know that it's a bit forward of me to ask but… It's been a long time since I've written anything, and I think that my writing has more than likely deteriorated. Personally, I hope it hasn't- but I'm curious what you guys think._ ^w^ _Please don't hold back!_


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